Dengue sends Speaker Belmonte to hospital

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has been hospitalized because of dengue.

In a statement released by the House of Representatives on Thursday afternoon, Belmonte was reported under the weather since Monday morning and eventually caught fever by nighttime.

“Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. would like to apologize for any speaking engagements, courtesy calls and appointments he may have missed during the week as he is currently indisposed. We assure everyone it is nothing serious and he is doing well under the care of his doctors at St. Luke’s Medical Center,” the statement read.

“He [Speaker] is confined at the hospital to manage his dengue infection and so that he may recover faster under excellent care and with complete rest,” it said, quoting the Speaker’s daughter, Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte.

Because he was in sickbay, Belmonte missed the Liberal Party affair last Tuesday wherein the LP’s 2016 standard-bearer courted his party mates and other allies of the Aquino administration for support.

Belmonte is the LP’s vice chairman.

Vice Mayor Belmonte however, assured that her father will be back in top shape sooner rather than later.

“He expects to be back to performing his duties very soon,” the younger Belmonte said.

With Belmonte sidelined by sickness, the House is yet to muster a quorum or enough attendance this week, putting passage of the proposed law on the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in peril.

Aside from the lawmakers’ absence, the proposed Bangsamoro measure would soon compete for the lawmakers’ attention because deliberations on the proposed P3-trillion budget for 2016 will also begin next week.